Canastota wrestling crowns three champs at CSC tourney

By PERRY L. NOVAK

Saturday, January 26, 2013

MARCY - While Holland Patent and Dolgeville battled it out for the team title at the 2013 Center State Conference Wrestling Tournament, Dispatch-area schools had individuals involved in some great battles for their share of the limelight.

And none did better than Canastota.

The Raiders crowned three champions at Whitesboro High School on Saturday, with Jesse Puchales and Zack Zupan earning pins in their title bouts. The only other local school with a wrestler to break through for a crown was Camden as Garrett Mitchell won at 132.

Puchales' pin against HP's Brandon Lake started a run of three straight championships for Canastota. It was a one-point match at the time the Canastota senior worked an overhead cradle for a pin just 26 seconds into the second period in their 170-pound bout.

Zupan, the reigning state champ, pinned Kasey Foster of Dolgeville in 3:16 at 182 and Wyatt Albanese followed with a hard-fought 1-0 win at 195 against Vernon-Verona-Sherrill's Lane Frost. The defensive struggle was punctuated by an Albanese escape early in the second period, though Lane almost tied or won the match at the final horn.

It was similarly close for most of the other finalists. Mitchell prevailed against HP's Alex Herringshaw 4-2 thanks to an escape late in the match. A great duck under takedown in the second period gave the Camden star a 3-0 lead and enough of a cushion to withstand Herringshaw's good rally.

Oneida's Matt Fisher almost handed Adirondack unbeaten Tyler Spann his first loss in the finals at 160. Fisher earned the first takedown, but Spann quickly reversed him to stay even after one period. The wrestlers traded reversals in the second period then Fisher gambled and gave Spann an escape early in the third. The Oneida senior had a deep single leg takedown attempt in the final seconds, but Spann was able to hang on for a 5-4 win.

VVS had two other finalists, but both met the same fate as Frost. The first to settle for second was Kasey Proper at 138. A roll earned him five points in the second period against New Hartford's Sean McKenna. McKenna earned a reversal at the end of the period and another early in the third and held on to win 6-5.

Gage Patry was an underdog at 152 against Dolgeville's Triston Engle and wrestled well in the first period to be even at 0-0. Engle was too tough on top in the second, though, and he won by pin in 2:50 thanks to an arm bar.

HP edged Dolgeville 146-142 for the crown and Canastota was third with 138.